Moto Z, Moto Mods to Launch in India by October, Confirms Lenovo

Lenovo has revealed that the recently unveiled Moto Z along with the magnetic snap-on back panels, the Moto Mods, will launch in India by October. The Chinese company also revealed plans to expand the offline retail channel in India for its smartphones.

Aymar de Lencquesaing, Senior Vice President, Lenovo Group, Co-President, MBG (Mobile Business Group), Chairman and President, Motorola Mobility on Wednesday during a media briefing said, “It [Moto Z and Moto Mods] will come to India in September or October time frame and this is a product for which we think there is scope in the Indian market.” The company has already revealed that the Module Development Kit (MDK) of the Moto Mods, which is exclusively owned by Lenovo, will be sold beginning this summer to third party developers. Lencquesaing stressed that there is a market for products like Moto Z and Moto Mods in India.

On being asked whether Lenovo wants to build a developer ecosystem in India as well, Lencquesaing said that there is an existing developer team in Bengaluru but further revealed how it intends to expand.

He revealed that Lenovo will extend the developer ecosystem by announcing various developer competitions in India. Lencquesaing gave an example of a recently announced developer competition on global basis under which the best idea will get capital of $1 million to begin the work. He added that the company will reward the best idea for Moto Mods.

The company at the media briefing showcased the Moto Mods which connect to the 16 dots at the rear. At launch, these will include the JBL SoundBoost, the Moto Insta-Share Projector (meant to deliver a 70-inch projector experience), and the Power Pack (said to provide up to 22 hours of additional battery life).

Talking about the Indian market, Lencquesaing claimed that the company has been successful with the online platform but will look to expand to offline retailers. He hinted that the company is looking to sell more devices offline soon, but did not share any timeline.

To recall, Lenovo’s recently launched the Moto Z and Moto Z Force smartphones at its Tech World 2016 in San Francisco. The Chinese company also unveiled the Lenovo Phab 2 Pro, the first Tango smartphone developed in collaboration with Google, at the same event.